You Are Right
by Timelong
Summary: Simba, now living with Timon and Pumbaa in the jungle, is plagued by constant nightmares. He finds that running through the night helps him, but one night, he runs into a strange leopard...    Oneshot.


AN: Sorry for the re-upload, but after posting yesterday, I realized that I didn't really like the beginning, so I changed it. Most of it is still unchanged, so don't worry if you already read it. This was done for a writing competition on a Lion King fansite, which is why it doesn't follow my usual pattern (bold intro text per chapter and such). This was doe on vacation, so I cranked it out in two days. Unfortunately, the updated version which you now see came about too late to be resubmitted in the fansite, so those guys will get version 1.0.

You Are Right

Simba yawned as he walked next to Timon and Pumbaa. They had pent another day searching for grubs, playing games, and just plain goofing off. Now, the young cub felt exhausted, and was ready to go to sleep. He looked up at the purple sky through the treetops, the sun already setting through the jungle foliage.

"Come on, buddy! You look like you can spend a week passed out!" Timon said, noticing how Simba slogged along next to them. "What a day, huh? All that grub, all that Hakuna Matata! I could do this all the time!"

Pumbaa also looked over, and smiled at Simba's tired face. "Just a little more, young Simba!" He said. Next to him, Simba smiled a little, and leaned on the warthog as a support as the three of them headed to their usual sleeping area.

Finally, the three of them reached the small grassy patch where Timon and Pumbaa slept. The duo walked over, and Timon took his usual spot on top of Pumbaa's belly. Next to them, Simba spotted a nice spot a little away and lay down, closing his eyes. Almost immediately, he was asleep. As Simba slept, he started dreaming.

_He was back at the Pridelands, walking. His heart clenched as he recognized the gorge. Slowly and fearfully, Simba walked down into the canyon. At first, nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but as Simba walked, he could tell that things were not fine. In the distance, he could see a group of lionesses from the pride, huddled together. He approached slowly, and when he was close enough, the lionesses looked at him, hate in their eyes. _

_Simba noticed this, and looked at the ground quickly to avoid their angry glares. Trembling, he walked though the pride, and saw what they were huddled around: Mufasa's body lay just it had when Simba last saw it. Upon seeing this, tears blurred his eyes._

_Something nudged his shoulder, and Simba looked up to see his mother's angry face._

"_Why did you do this, Simba?" She demanded, not bothering to hide the hate in her voice. "Your own father! How could you?"_

_Simba backed away. "No! Please! It was an accident!" He said. He turned to try and run, but another lioness stopped him. It was Sarafina. _

"_You of all lions!" She scolded. "You don't belong in our pride! You should be killed, just like you did to Mufasa! You don't deserve to live!"_

"_No! I didn't do it! Please! There was a stampede! And he –"_

_Sarabi growled at him loudly, and Simba turned just in time to see her shout at him again. "And you started the stampede! It's your fault, Simba! It's your fault, and you know it! If you were not down here, Mufasa would still be alive!"_

_Simba couldn't stand it. "B- But I didn't want to do it! I didn't want to kill him! I didn't know! Pleas listen to me, mom! I didn't want this to happen!" He tried explaining. But his pride didn't listen._

_From the lionesses surrounding him, Nala emerged. Simba looked at her, hopeful. "Nala, please, you know that I wouldn't do this!" He told her desperately. "Help me, Nala! I didn't kill dad! Help them listen to me!"_

_Nala took one look at Mufasa's body before turning back to Simba. The raw hate seeping out of her eyes was enough to cause Simba to move backwards, only to stumble and fall. But it wasn't the worst part. The worst was what she said next. Unlike the adults, Nala's shout wasn't long. It was short and to the point._

"_Murderer! You killed him!"_

In a flash, Simba woke up and bolted into the night. Tears streaked his face as he ran, not caring about the fact that he didn't notice where he was going. Ragged pants escaped him as his lungs cried for more air. His muscles burned as he forced his limbs to move faster. Somehow, he will be able to outrun this nightmare. Already, the shear effort was replacing the memory of the nightmare.

He jumped on a log over a small stream and ran across. But as Simba jumped back down on the other side, something big crashed into him, causing the cub to trip and fall over. Simba rolled painfully on the ground, losing his orientation momentarily before jumping back on his feet.

Simba looked around, scanning the night jungle for what he crashed into. He spotted a large shadow move over some bushes, frightening. He stepped back against his will, scared and shaking in fear.

"S- Stay back! I'll - I'll fight!" Simba shouted into the night air, trying to hide his fear. Not easy when he was just trying to outrun a nightmare.

Out of the darkness, a lone figure emerged. Simba cringed back when he identified it as a leopard. The much larger feline would have no trouble taking Simba down if it so decided to.

"What are you doing all alone at a night like this, young cub?" The leopard asked. "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you."

Simba looked up uncertainly. "I… I was just running," he said softly, unable to find his voice.

The leopard looked at him curiously. "And what are you running from, may I ask? Aren't you a lion cub? Where's your pride?" He asked.

Simba looked up again, this time with anger. "What would you care? What do you know?"

The leopard chuckled slightly. "I would like to think that I know a lot of things. I decided that I wanted to learn I could, so here I am, wandering around, learning as much as I can." The leopard said. "Oh, and the name's Konsus." He added quickly.

"I'm Simba." Simba said, is voice barely audible.

Konsus looked at him. "I noticed that you lived here for a while now," he said. "Why are you alone?" he asked. "I believe I can help you," he added.

Simba looked at the ground, trying to hide a fresh set of tears. "You can't help me. Not unless you can change the past."

Konsus looked at Simba, noticing the sadness in the cub's body. "No, I can't change the past." He admitted. "But I don't think that the past will need to be changed." He said. "If you work with it, I am sure that despite what happened in the past, you can change the future for the better."

Simba shook his head. "Not with me," he whispered. Looking up at Konsus's eyes, Simba took a deep breath. "It's about my dad…" he said slowly. "He's… not here anymore. He's dead."

Whatever Konsus was expecting, it wasn't that. "You were close to you father, weren't you?" He asked. Simba nodded his head feebly. Konsus let out a sigh. "I know it may sound harsh, but… death is part of life. Your father would not want you to die alone out here. He didn't die just so that you can run off. Go back to your pride and grow up proud. Simba, I know it may be hard, but I am certain that your father doesn't want this for you."

Simba's eyes widened in fear and he started backing away. "No… I c– can't…" he said. "I can't go back. I was exiled." He told the leopard. "I can't go back," he repeated.

Konsus shook his head. "Simba, don't do this to yourself. I don't see why a cub such as yourself would get exiled. What about your mother? You didn't say that she's dead too. Go to her. I won't be surprised if she wants you to be with her now." He said. "Simba, can you hear me?" He asked.

Simba could barely see now, his vision blurry with tears. "No, you won't understand," he told Konsus. "She doesn't want me. She will kill me if I go back!"

Konsus shook his head. "Simba, you aren't thinking. Why would your mother want to kill you? What could you have done to cause your own mother to hate you?" He asked.

By now, Simba was up on his feet, hyperventilating from fear. "Simba?" Konsus asked, "Don't be afraid… I can help you…"

"No you can't!" Simba shouted at the leopard. "You can't help me, so don't even try!" He cried out, hurt and angry.

"Why can't I help you?" Konsus asked. "What did you do? Just tell me! I'm sure it's not as bad as you think-" he started saying.

"It is as bad as I think!" Simba cried out. "You don't know anything!" He shouted, and turned to flee back to Timon and Pumbaa.

"I will know if you just tell me what happened!" Konsus told the cub.

Simba let out an angry growl. "No I won't! You won't understand! If I tell you, you will kill me too!" He shouted.

Konsus was taken back. "No, Simba! I don't want to kill you. Why would I?" He asked.

"Because I killed him! I murdered dad!" Simba cried out, now unable to see from all the tears in his eyes. "I killed him!" He repeated, and ran off, leaving the leopard behind, and disappeared into the darkness of the jungle.

Konsus let out a sigh and sat down, feeling sad for Simba. "You're right, Simba," he whispered. "I don't know anything."

Looking up at the dark ground where Simba was just moments before, Konsus slowly got up. "If I knew enough, I would have indeed been able to help you." He said into the darkness. "I'm sorry, Simba. I wish I could have helped you, but I can't."

Now, Konsus felt his own tears forming. "I still think you're wrong." He said. Konsus looked up at where Simba ran off. "Don't die out here, Simba!" He shouted. "You don't deserve to die! You are not a murderer! You hear me? Stay alive, Simba!"

Konsus turned into the dark jungle and walked away slowly, feeling like he now was somehow responsible for the cub's inevitable death. "I'm sorry for not being able to help you… If only I knew how to… save your life." Konsus said. Unable to contain his emotions, he let his own tears fall.

"Stay strong, Simba. You are a great cub." He said. What Konsus didn't tell Simba was that he had observed the cub for the past few days. As he walked deeper into the jungle, Konsus looked back one last time.

"Goodnight, Simba."


End file.
